A Solo Review of the Adventure in Tears of a Goddess
Take a look at the exciting and mysterious adventure lurking within the Graphic Novel Adventure, Tears of a Goddess.
There are all sorts of journeys to take with Graphic Novel Adventures. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I first took a look at Tears of a Goddess. It seemed to be a serene sort of tale until I spent a few seconds reading the introduction and rules. Jump on board to learn more about this unique adventure through the eyes of a very independent character!
Game Overview
Game Name: Tears of a Goddess
Publication Year: 2015
Designer: Emmanuel Manuro
Artist: Ben Jurdic
Solo Mode: Designed for Solo (Included in the Base Game)
Average Setup Time: Almost None
Average Play Time: 30 Minutes
Play Area Size: 22″ x 12″
Through various specialties and paths, the story unfolds in unexpected ways. The goal is to find a trio of thieves and return stolen artifacts. It’s quite the adventure!
The Overall Objective and Paths to Victory
Fraught with danger, surviving through the end is a lot more difficult than it might seem. Each of the 3 thieves must be tracked in a different part of the world. It’s not a straight path to find each one, either! There are objects to pick up and important information to learn along the way. Each confrontation is also difficult… Bounty hunters are unwelcome.
Despite being a relatively short gamebook, there are all sorts of secrets to uncover and paths to discover. There might be a truly optimal sequence, yet it takes time to figure out how to succeed. One play might traverse completely different regions simply due to the partially open-world concept of exploration. But turning back is usually impossible.
The objective of finding the thieves and recovering the artifacts is static, but the different specializations allow for very different ways to proceed. An option might only be available with the right focus, or even item! Tricky, tricky.
The Bounty Hunter
Not much is known about the main character, although there are glimpses into her path. At the start, you choose 1 of 3 specialties to use during the play.
Each one has its pros and cons. I know how to win with a couple of them, and it doesn’t seem like any is necessarily incorrect. It all comes down to mastering each one!
That might be one of the strengths. There is enough variety in the specialties, yet practice is also rewarded.
Which would you choose of disguise, weapon throwing, or burglary? Each offers up plenty of unique options.
Relevant Component Information
Of all the season one Graphic Novel Adventures, this clocks in as the shortest with just 236 panels. Others have around 320-340 panels, just for comparison. Fewer panels usually lead to fewer choices. However, the specialties spice up the decisions. A single location could have 2 or 3 different options, depending on what the character knows.
The gamebook is the only required component. A character sheet does help with tracking some information, although it’s easy to get around it. I still recommend checking it out, though, since it’s a nice way to present the details. It’s important to know the status of certain limited-use items. Potions? Poisons? There are some dark turns!
Careful Exploration
Aside from tracking down the thieves, the world itself is filled with its own dangers. It’s important to explore before time runs out. Yet treading lightly is recommended.
The city is filled with all manner of surprises. Some are nice, but most can be downright deadly. Watch out!
A few areas have somewhat mature content. Just a fair warning! These instances don’t detract from the story, but there are a few elements that might raise a few eyebrows.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time exploring the world. In fact, I still have some mysteries to eventually solve!
Endless Dangers
Is instantaneous death possible? Well, would this be a proper gamebook if that weren’t the case? Ha ha! There are some scenarios where it all comes to an abrupt end.
At the same time, a lot of the death scenes are predictable. Getting extremely close to a deadly monster usually isn’t that great of an idea. Lesson learned!
Some scenes involve choosing between random options. Combat can be a little odd, but paying attention is worth it.
The battle scenes often try to showcase a weakness in an enemy. I started to do much better when I actually looked!
The Reusability of a Graphic Novel Adventure
Tears of a Goddess is surprisingly reusable. Maybe it’s just me, though! I love trying out the different specialties and seeing what special things I can do with each one. For instance, the disguise specialty opens up a unique path towards one of the thieves that isn’t normally available. The same holds true for the other specialties.
There are some bloody scenes and not-so-pleasant content here and there, but the journey is quite an exciting one. I’ve completed it several times and still feel like I haven’t seen everything! It’s nice to go through and see what can happen.
A final list of achievements also offers a few clues into potentially missed sections. I think I have a couple I’ve never come across yet for whatever reason. I’m definitely planning on returning to the adventure down the line!
My Rating of Tears of a Goddess
As I mentioned a few times, I’ve successfully completed this adventure a handful of times. I may know how to complete certain sections, yet the combination of a unique specialty and one-way paths keeps each play relatively unique! I know I’ve missed certain puzzles and haven’t figured out how to use some important objects in the correct ways.
Some of the content is slightly mature and possibly unsavory in a few rare panels. However, I enjoy returning to this adventure! The color palette and style are rather bright in most places. Not that I absolutely need to play as a strong female character, yet it’s nice to have one here. She can take care of herself and feels like her own person.
With a fair number of variables in the mix, I still haven’t tired of the journey just yet. I definitely plan to pull this gamebook out every year or so. It’s awesome to work through a mystery, explore the world, and work towards victory!
%
10 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
8
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
10
Originality
Design & Theme
7
Quality
Components & Rules
7
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
8
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
1
+ Pros (Positives)
- The style of the artwork is rather unique and includes everything from brightly colored scenes to evil enemies.
- The female bounty hunter character is rather different, yet she stands on her own and seems like a real person.
- With multiple specialties to choose from at the start, each play can progress very differently with unique options.
- Hidden numbers are often rare, but aren’t extremely difficult to find with a little extra attention.
- Many different items can be found throughout the world and used at unexpected times in the future.
- The story itself is intriguing with its mix of mystery and combat, as well as glimpses into the character’s past.
- Several problems or puzzles can be approached in multiple ways, often with different ways to succeed.
- There are a lot of decisions in terms of what order to explore and how to overcome certain obstacles.
- A timing mechanism helps encourage wise exploration, rather than wasting time looking at minor clues.
- The adventure is relatively short, which makes it easy to complete in a short period of time in a single sitting.
– Cons (Negatives)
- A handful of scenes are a little on the mature side with some language and don’t really add much to the story.
- The binding is still barely intact, yet it feels very weak near the back cover and final section of pages.
- Several scenes involve random choices in terms of how to proceed in combat with no obvious solutions.
- There is an optimal sequence to follow through the different areas, and not figuring this out can be detrimental.
Continue the Conversation
Have you had the opportunity to play Tears of a Goddess? I was pleasantly surprised by my first play, and it turned into something of a gamebook classic for me! Are there any other gamebooks you’ve been impressed with? I know this one isn’t for everyone. However, it’s an adventure I enjoy and still have more details to discover in the future!
I also enjoyed this graphic novel adventure, though I think that Captive, by the same author but a different illustrator, is better in terms of both theme and game play and represents the very best of the series. Loup Garou by the author Moon is my second favourite of the series.
Great choices, Scott! The variety in the stories seems to ensure that everyone will have their own favorites. I’ll have an overview of everything from season one eventually with my top picks. Thanks for sharing, and it’s great to hear you had a great time with these, too!